sixrings
Senior Member
I give up on life.
Toronto Rogers Centre Renovations | ?m | ?s | Toronto Blue Jays | Populous
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animatronic
Senior Member
Replace in place could work, but timings would be tight:
- remove roof and hotel in offseason
- play a year as an open stadium (note challenges with drainage)
- build a 5k stadium at York University or Downsview with temporary seating to 35k
- play 1-2 seasons at temp stadium
- build new stadium slightly offset from current so you can build and tear down at the same time
- remove roof and hotel in offseason
- play a year as an open stadium (note challenges with drainage)
- build a 5k stadium at York University or Downsview with temporary seating to 35k
- play 1-2 seasons at temp stadium
- build new stadium slightly offset from current so you can build and tear down at the same time
sixrings
Senior Member
I agree with your theory except everyone should stop using downsview as potential places for sports team construction. That may have worked when the downsview airport was up and running but going forward downsview park will be about fitting as many condos as possible on the land.
G.L.17
Senior Member
Technically 3k off; the Blue Jays were able to get 52,000 + during the World Series home games
thefreak
Active Member
The portlands location would be amazing. Imagine that view looking downtown. I don't see Rogers building it though. Best case Edward Rogers buys the team and builds his personal legacy with a new stadium. He definitely has the money to do it - and the ego too 
G.L.17
Senior Member
The portlands location would be amazing. Imagine that view looking downtown. I don't see Rogers building it though. Best case Edward Rogers buys the team and builds his personal legacy with a new stadium. He definitely has the money to do it - and the ego too
EddyMCD
Active Member
Just because the batters aren't looking at the skyline you could still have a cutout in the upper bowl down the 3rd base line that shows off the downtown skyline.
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sixrings
Senior Member
Are you trying to say that woodbridges post was all drivel? Thank god I can sleep again
Anyways I think if we really want a view we should build a stadium above a skyscraper. That way we would have the best view in baseball. How would you get 30k people up an elevator to said stadium. I dunno. But it would be as doable as a stadium on an island but with a way better view.
syn
Senior Member
Given how quickly we seem to tire of stadiums, I'd rather it not be located on the Portlands.
To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure how pouring hundreds of millions into the current venue will only result in 10-15 more years. I feel like the place still has a lot of life left in it.
To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure how pouring hundreds of millions into the current venue will only result in 10-15 more years. I feel like the place still has a lot of life left in it.
sixrings
Senior Member
syn
Senior Member
Go with me next time you'll have an amazing view.
Translude15
Frank the Tank
Perhaps drivel is an exaggeration but season ticket holder or not, a lot of what you've said/suggested is hearsay and not rooted in reality. I'm also coming from the POV that the larger the capacity people claim the Dome has or as unorthodox or toilet bowl in appearance it may be, the more they are exaggerating the true nature of what the stadium is.
Current full capacity of the Dome is 49,282. You may be able to push above that with standing room only in certain areas, namely the Flight Deck, various concourse locations. Saying that, that max capacity of under 50,000 (reduced from ~52,000 in 2005 after 100 level concourses were redone) is broken down as follows:
~45,000 seats within the 100, 200 and 500 levels
~4,000 seats within all private boxes, suites etc. within the 300 and 400 levels
~500 standing room only locations
The highest ever baseball attendance in SkyDome history was 52,383 for the 1991 All Star Game. As stated, capacity has steadily reduced over the years to our current pubic hair shade over 49,000. Technically speaking, 45,000+ is a sellout.
My point here is the Dome and all of its foibles, is nowhere near as bad, nor has it ever been as bad as the original cookie-cutter, multipurpose stadia of yesteryear. Veterans Stadium, Three Rivers, Cinergy Field, Astrodome, Olympic Stadium and the Kingdome were all objectively worse than what SkyDome ever was or projects to be in the future. That's the advantage the team has moving forward in that whatever renovations or restructuring can be done to the existing structure, which by the sounds of it will be extensive, then they will undoubtedly make it more ballpark-esque.
IMO, some sort of rebuild or hybrid replace in place is the best bet. Keep the roof, add in some transparent panels. Take down the hotel and open up the place to the city. There's plenty of redevelopment land north of the stadium, over the tracks and to the east, although the Convention Centre is owned by Oxford, not Brookfield. I'm sure some arrangement is ongoing between all interested parties, the city included. Personally, relocation outside of the core is a non-starter. Reducing capacity down to 40,000 - 42,000 is ideal from a ticket selling perspective and in down years, 20,000 fans looks a lot better in a smaller venue. We shall see what the future holds.
sixrings
Senior Member
Opening day and October baseball is great in Rogers centre despite its faults. The fact it’s almost half empty 95% of the game kills the vibe of the spectators. I’m sure if the skydome was half its size in its exact same iteration we wouldn’t have all the complaints that we do here. I make fun but I do appreciate a view. It’s just not the reason I go to baseball games and I’m surely not going if it’s far out of the way. I loved downtown Toronto for a decade and went to the island twice.
Translude15
Frank the Tank
2016 WC game was played with the roof open. See below. Likewise for all October home games last year.
A 25k crowd isn't horrible nor would I say it "kills the vibe" of the place. 35k - 40k is ideal but again, this goes back to the trend of MLB parks reducing overall capacity to create more intimate settings.
Ideally, the Jays and Rogers keep the retractable roof in tact which is much more convenient throughout April into early May and convert the venue from an indoor to an outdoor facility. That maintains the best of both worlds for fans and the team in terms of no weather related delays.
sixrings
Senior Member
I think most people would disagree about your 25k sentiment. People think it looks so sterile and concrete like. But that’s much more noticeable when the stadium is half full. Looks good full in that Wild Card game though.
That or people have convinced themselves that if they were in an outdoor stadium magically they would like baseball again.or that they could convince others to come with them to the game.
Part of me thinks it would have been a better investment to simply spend 50 million extra on payroll each year and put on the field a winning product which would make people come out again fixing the half full problem.
I can’t understand being too cheap to compete with the Yankees and Red Sox in payroll but be willing to spend close to a billion dollars on a stadium and land if the government doesn’t pitch in